1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a supply device for use in a semiconductor assembly machine wherein plate-form workpieces are pushed out one at a time from a magazine.
2. Prior Art
The supply of plate-form workpieces in, for example, wire bonding devices, pellet bonding devices, etc. employed in a semiconductor assembling machine ordinarily uses a magazine in which a multiple number of plate form workpieces such as lead frames, etc. are piled or stacked up. The magazine is placed on an elevator table of an elevator section of the assembly machine, and the workpieces are successively positioned at a height of a feeder in accordance with the stacking interval of the workpieces. The workpieces are pushed out to the feeder from the magazine by a push arm of a pushing device.
In conventional supply devices as described above, the pusher is directly fixed to a predetermined position of the elevator section, and an air cylinder is generally used as a driving source for the pusher arm. The air cylinder is installed horizontally. Furthermore, no consideration is given to workpieces which are caught inside the magazine or on the feeder which would occur when the workpiece is pushed out.
In the prior art, since the pusher is directly secured to a predetermined portion of the elevator section, if a magazine of different size is used because of the differences in the type of workpiece to be processed, the position of the pusher arm must be independently adjusted every time the workpieces of different sizes are handled, and a level adjustment work is also required. These adjustments take time. As a result, the working efficiency drops.
In addition, since the driving source of the pusher is a horizontally installed air cylinder, the size of the supply device for used in a semiconductor assembly machine as a whole tends to be large, resulting in a poor space efficiency.
Furthermore, since in the prior art no consideration has been given to troubles such as "hanging-up" of the workpieces, the workpieces tend to be damaged.